Child Passenger Safety Week

I think that as parents, we can all agree that our children's safety is a top priority, and we will do as much as we can to keep them safe. One of the ways we keep them safe everyday, is to make sure that when they are a passenger in a vehicle, they are using the proper restraint. 

That might mean that they are rear facing, or they are in a high back booster seat until they have met the height and weight requirements to not need one.  Another way we can ensure children are as safe as possible in a vehicle, is to keep them in the back seat until they are 13 years old.  Even if you have a large 10 year old, they are still safest in the back seat. It has nothing to do with size, but with their bone development.

Mr. J was rear facing until 15 months, but when I had Mr. K the recommendation was 2 years. Even though he screamed through almost every car ride, I kept him rear facing knowing that he was safest that way (I won't lie though, I was absolutely thrilled when I turned him forward and the screaming stopped).

Something that not all parents know, is that car seats and booster seats should be replaced, even if your vehicle is involved in a low speed crash and the seats don't look damaged. With this week being Child Passenger Safety Week, Carstar and Evenflo want you to be aware of the need to replace the seats, read below for more information.

REPLACE YOUR CHILD SAFETY SEAT AFTER A CRASH TO ENSURE CHILDREN ARE PROTECTED ON THE ROAD

Even Low Speed Crashes Can Cause Car Seat Damage, Reduce Protection and Performance in Future Crashes

"HAMILTON, ON (September 21, 2018)– Child car seats are designed to protect children during a crash, but do you know how to ensure that car seat is safe AFTER the crash?

While most drivers immediately plan to repair or replace the vehicle after the crash, they don’t always consider that the forces that damaged their car also could have damaged their child’s car seat or booster seat.

According to Transport Canada,parents should dispose of their child seat or booster seat if the child car seat was in a vehicle during a crash. Even if the child car seat was empty or was not directly hit, it may have been damaged.

CARSTAR and Evenflo have teamed up for Child Passenger Safety Week to educate parents and caregiversabout car seat replacement after a crash.

“As a mother of twin boys, you always want to make sure your children are protected in the car,” said Shannon Spake, Fox Sports host who covers football, basketball and motorsports. “When your car is involved in a crash, it’s just as important that you take care of your car seat or booster seat as it is to address the car damage. CARSTAR and Evenflo want to make sure parents everywhere are aware of the potential need to replace their car seat or booster seat after a crash.”

“CARSTAR is committed to repairing accident damage and getting families back on the road in a safe vehicle, and the child safety seat is a major part of that vehicle’s safety system,” said Dean Fisher, Chief Operating Officer for CARSTAR. “Any time you’re replacing sheet metal, bumpers, air bags and other safety systems, you’ve been in an accident hard enough to damage the car seat. It’s a cost that many insurance policies cover, so it’s always smart to replace the car seat and ensure your child is safe and protected on the road.”

Evenflo recommends that consumers contact their car seat manufacturer if they have questions about car seat replacement after a crash.

“Crash damage to a car seat or booster seat may not always be visible,” said Evenflo Safety Advocate Sarah Haverstick. “Damage can occur even if the child restraint is unoccupied during the crash. If a consumer has a question about whether their car seat should be replaced, it is important to contact their car seat manufacturer directly for guidance.”

Evenflo offers additional child passenger safety tips:
Make sure your child’s age, weight and height are within the requirements for any car seat you are considering for purchase
Check the Transport Canada guidance to help determine what type of car seat is appropriate for child’s size and development level
For help with car seat installation and use, contact your car seat manufacturer or find a certified child passenger safety technician near you

For more tips on driving and collision repair, visit www.carstar.com. CARSTAR Auto Body Repair Experts offers high-quality, reliable repair service in 35 states and 10 Canadian provinces. Just call 1-800-CARSTAR when you need a vehicle repair, and they will send a tow truck, contact your insurance company, arrange for a rental car and repair your car. For information and store locations, visit here."

Effects of a Tornado, and Realizing We Need To Be More Prepared

(photo taken by my husband a few months ago, not from September 21)

Living in the Ottawa area, I have always felt pretty safe in terms of natural disasters. The part of the city we live in isn't near water, so flooding isn't likely to happen. We get the odd earthquake, but nothing super big and damaging. There has been a random tornado warning over the years, but other than a little bit of high wind and hail, no touchdowns or real damage.

Until now. Last Friday, there were tornado warnings for our area. Late afternoon saw some pretty high winds and rain, and a tornado touched down just a bit North of us - 20 minute drive away. It was categorized as an EF-3, and it touched down in 3 areas (Kinburn, Dunrobin and Gatineau). A little while later, an EF-2 touched down about 15 minutes east of us.

Many areas of the city were without power for hours (some for less than 8, and others 48hours +). We were "lucky", and only out for about 22 hours. Other than some minor inconvenience, we were totally fine.

Seeing the footage of the areas hit by the tornadoes is heartbraking. Knowing that people lost their homes, vehicles, and pets. Hearing about the people that were hospitalized with injuries (thankfully, I haven't heard of any deaths yet, but there are some pretty serious injuries) - is absolutely devastating.

Many I have spoken with felt the same type of security as I did, and likely did not take the tornado warnings as seriously as we should have.

It has also made me realize just how important it is to be prepared.

We had lots of propane for the BBQ, so were able to make breakfast on the side burner Saturday morning, and boiled water for a neighbour so they could make tea.

We had lots of non-perishables that we could eat (crackers, bread, cereal, peanut butter, potatoes, rice). May not be the most nutritious meals, but food to keep us going. We made sure to not open the freezer, so that hopefully all the meat and food we had in it would stay frozen.  The fridge, we didn't open until the next morning, when we knew most items would have to be tossed anyways. Our eggs were still super cold, and the butter was still fine too.  We tossed the pepperoni, cheese and a few other items that we were worried about.

We were able to use our phones as flashlights, and since we had gas in our vehicles could power up to make sure we didn't lose charge.

What I do need though, is an emergency preparedness kit. I plan on putting together a small bin with flashlights, extra batteries, first aid kit, some bottled water (our water supply was fine, but depending on what happens, it might not be), blankets, matches or lighter).

If you want to contribute to those that have been affected by the recent events, you can donate to the redcross.

As hard as it is being without power (when we are so used to it), it really is just a minor, minor inconvenience in the grand scheme of things. The hydro workers and first responders worked so hard this weekend to get things cleaned up and power restored. It does NOT go unnoticed or unappreciated. I am sure that their families were missing them, and also worried for their safety while they were trying to get things restored for the rest of the city.

September 24th Monday Madness Giveaway Linky

How would you like to win some prizes? Make sure to enter the great giveaways linked up below. If you are a blogger, feel free to list any open giveaways you have on your blog. Make sure to list the prize, end date and country eligibility (CAN/US/WW) any listed without this information will be deleted.

September 17th Monday Madness Giveaway Linky

How would you like to win some prizes? Make sure to enter the great giveaways linked up below. If you are a blogger, feel free to list any open giveaways you have on your blog. Make sure to list the prize, end date and country eligibility (CAN/US/WW) any listed without this information will be deleted.

September 3rd Monday Madness Giveaway Linky

How would you like to win some prizes? Make sure to enter the great giveaways linked up below. If you are a blogger, feel free to list any open giveaways you have on your blog. Make sure to list the prize, end date and country eligibility (CAN/US/WW) any listed without this information will be deleted.

End of Summer Cottage Fun

(Tales of Mommyhood received the below mentioned products in exchange for being featured on the blog. Opinion belongs to Tales of Mommyhood, your experience/opinion may vary)

Every summer we try and make it to my aunt and uncles cottage in Golden Lake. We normally go up and spend the day, and come home after supper.  We did not have a chance to get there in June or July, and August was coming to an end. Last week, when we went to the beach, the kids were asking me about it, so I got in touch with my aunt to see if we could come for a visit.

Summer Week 9

Well, this is it - the final summer update. I am quite surprised at how fast this summer vacation flew by, although I know that I say that every year. As the kids get older, it seems to go by quicker and quicker.

Hubby was off this week; he took them for their back to school hair cuts at the beginning of the week, Mr. K turned 8, there were some epic nerf battles (with hubby and Mr. K, me and Mr. K, Mr. K and a friend), hubby got a brand new truck, Mr. K and I had some special errands to run on Thursday (one of them buying his cub scout uniform), and Mr. J and hubby went golfing. We had our annual visit to the Carp Custom Creamery for ice cream, and are finishing up by spending some time at my aunt and uncles cottage today.

As the kids get older, it is even more apparent to me how important it is to spend time together as a family. Playing board games, going for ice cream, seeing a movie, bike rides etc. It's not always about what interests us as parents, but spending time doing things that the kids like, even if it's not something we particularly enjoy.

School starts back in a couple of days, and while I am looking forward to having a bit more routine, it's just one year closer to them growing up and leaving home.  I am happy that they are growing and maturing, and seeing the changes makes me smile, but it's something that is bittersweet. They will always be my "babies", and I will always want to snuggle them and hold them like when they were young, but they don't seem to want that anymore.